“But she broke that, didn’t she?” I asked.

“She did,” Thomas said. “And she told Ryan I walked out because I didn’t want the responsibility of a son.”

He looked at me, his eyes shining with unshed tears.

“She poisoned him against me from the day I left,” he said. “She made him believe I was a coward.”

I looked at the signatures on the bottom of the page.

Margaret’s elegant cursive was unmistakable next to Thomas’s blocky print.

“If Ryan sees this…” I began.

“Ryan won’t care,” Thomas said grimly. “Margaret has spent thirty years molding him into her image. He thinks like her now.”

He tapped the papers.

“But a family court judge will care,” he said. “This proves a thirty-year pattern of parental alienation, manufactured legal crises, and financial bribery.”

I felt a spark of hope in my chest, cold and sharp.

“Laura is coming with a lawyer,” I said. “Her name is Sarah Vance.”

Thomas nodded slowly. “Good. We need someone who can file a counter-petition before Margaret’s lawyers get to a judge.”

The baby in the bassinet next to my bed let out a soft, mewling cry.